A RARE INSCRIBED BRONZE FIGURE OF JUICHIMEN KANNON, HEIAN-KAMAKURA PERIOD, CIRCA 12TH-13TH CENTURY
A RARE INSCRIBED BRONZE FIGURE OF JUICHIMEN KANNON, HEIAN-KAMAKURA PERIOD, CIRCA 12TH-13TH CENTURY
This lot is from a single owner collection and is therefore offered without reserve
The Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger, entry from 2005:
“No. 365, KJ 1995, Japanese Kamakura 12th c. bronze Kannon”
Gallery price: EUR 5,800 or approx.
EUR 9,700 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing.
Japan. Finely hollow cast to depict the four-armed and eleven-headed Avalokiteshvara, holding the upper hands in anjali mudra and the lower hands supporting a bowl, dressed in loose robes falling in elegant folds along the legs, the face in a serene expression with downcast eyes, surmounted by twelve smaller heads including one of the Buddha Amitabha. The back cast with two protruding bars drilled with an aperture for suspension, two apertures on the side, and lacquered in red with an inscription.
Inscriptions: 五王、正三十三(応身), 'Go-o, Sei Sanjusan (oshin)' ([one of] The Five Kings, True thirty-three [manifestations]'
Provenance: Keiko Sato, London, United Kingdom, by 1995. Jorgen Ruben, acquired from the above. In the Jorgen Ruben Collection for 31 years. The stand with a collector's number 'J 365' and an old label inscribed 'JAP KAM 7,800 EUR 12th'.
Jorgen Ruben is a Danish art dealer and collector who has been active for over four decades and is highly regarded in the fields of Asian art and classical antiquities. Raised in an art-conscious family, Ruben was exposed early to both modern painting and European decorative arts. He began working in the art trade in the mid-1970s, first with Persian rugs and later with antiques, while travels to Iran and a visit to Persepolis sparked his lasting interest in antiquity. After studies in Copenhagen and London, he worked in England with a dealer in early furniture, before travelling widely in Latin America and Asia, deepening his knowledge of regional art and culture. In 1984 Ruben opened a gallery in Copenhagen dealing in Asian antiquities. He was later active in London and, in the early 2000s, operated the Brussels gallery Classic Art. Much of his career, however, has been conducted privately from home, selling by appointment to collectors, galleries, and museums. Ruben has always bought selectively, choosing only works that deeply engaged him, and often keeping them for many years until placing them with a collector he felt truly understood them.
Important Note: For essential information on the
Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger and provenance documentation please visit here: www.zacke.at/rubencollection_ledger
Condition: Good condition with expected wear, casting irregularities, an old crack to the back of the head, minor losses, signs of weathering, encrustations.
Weight: 743 g (incl. stand)
Dimensions: Height 21.6 cm (excl. stand), 24.2 cm (incl. stand)
With an associated modern stand. (2)
The word 'oshin' (応身) would have been inscribed underneath the number 33 and can be translated as 'manifestations'. The Thirty‑Three Manifestations are described in the Lotus Sutra, scroll 7, chapter 25, in the chapter 'The Universal Gate of the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara'. In various lands, Avalokiteshvara perceives the sufferings of sentient beings and transforms into whatever form is needed to save them. These thirty‑three forms are the manifestations taken in response to those different needs.
Honji suijaku is a Japanese religious concept in which Buddhist deities are seen as the original or 'true' forms (honji) of local Shinto kami (suijaku or manifest traces). Developed during the Heian and Kamakura periods, this doctrine provided a theological framework for the syncretism of Buddhism and Shinto, allowing native kami to be understood as manifestations of Buddhist figures. In art, honji suijaku is often represented visually by pairing a Buddhist deity with its corresponding kami.
In medieval shrine documents, Five Kings (五王) refers to five local kami grouped together as a collective deity-class, not to be confused with the esoteric Buddhist Five Great Wisdom Kings. A typical configuration of the Five Kings in shrine records is: first king - often the chief tutelary deity, associated with the Juichimen Kannon, second king - paired with Fudo Myoo, third king - paired with Yakushi Nyorai (Medicine Buddha), fourth king - paired with Jizo Bosatsu, fifth king - with Amida Bosatsu or Seishi Bosatsu
. The actual kami names differ by shrine, but the fivefold structure and Buddhist correspondences are consistent.
Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related bronze figure of the seated Juichimen Kannon, dated Heian to Kamakura period, 12th century, 16.5 cm tall, in the Cleveland Museum of Art, reference number 1960.279.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie's New York, 16 September 2025, lot 119
Price: USD 13,970 or approx.
EUR 12,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A bronze sculpture of a standing Kannon (Bodhisattva),Kamakura-Nanbokucho period (14th century)
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling and manner of casting with similar pose and robes. Note the larger size (33.7 cm).
Buyer's Premium
30%
A RARE INSCRIBED BRONZE FIGURE OF JUICHIMEN KANNON, HEIAN-KAMAKURA PERIOD, CIRCA 12TH-13TH CENTURY
This lot is from a single owner collection and is therefore offered without reserve
The Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger, entry from 2005:
“No. 365, KJ 1995, Japanese Kamakura 12th c. bronze Kannon”
Gallery price: EUR 5,800 or approx.
EUR 9,700 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing.
Japan. Finely hollow cast to depict the four-armed and eleven-headed Avalokiteshvara, holding the upper hands in anjali mudra and the lower hands supporting a bowl, dressed in loose robes falling in elegant folds along the legs, the face in a serene expression with downcast eyes, surmounted by twelve smaller heads including one of the Buddha Amitabha. The back cast with two protruding bars drilled with an aperture for suspension, two apertures on the side, and lacquered in red with an inscription.
Inscriptions: 五王、正三十三(応身), 'Go-o, Sei Sanjusan (oshin)' ([one of] The Five Kings, True thirty-three [manifestations]'
Provenance: Keiko Sato, London, United Kingdom, by 1995. Jorgen Ruben, acquired from the above. In the Jorgen Ruben Collection for 31 years. The stand with a collector's number 'J 365' and an old label inscribed 'JAP KAM 7,800 EUR 12th'.
Jorgen Ruben is a Danish art dealer and collector who has been active for over four decades and is highly regarded in the fields of Asian art and classical antiquities. Raised in an art-conscious family, Ruben was exposed early to both modern painting and European decorative arts. He began working in the art trade in the mid-1970s, first with Persian rugs and later with antiques, while travels to Iran and a visit to Persepolis sparked his lasting interest in antiquity. After studies in Copenhagen and London, he worked in England with a dealer in early furniture, before travelling widely in Latin America and Asia, deepening his knowledge of regional art and culture. In 1984 Ruben opened a gallery in Copenhagen dealing in Asian antiquities. He was later active in London and, in the early 2000s, operated the Brussels gallery Classic Art. Much of his career, however, has been conducted privately from home, selling by appointment to collectors, galleries, and museums. Ruben has always bought selectively, choosing only works that deeply engaged him, and often keeping them for many years until placing them with a collector he felt truly understood them.
Important Note: For essential information on the
Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger and provenance documentation please visit here: www.zacke.at/rubencollection_ledger
Condition: Good condition with expected wear, casting irregularities, an old crack to the back of the head, minor losses, signs of weathering, encrustations.
Weight: 743 g (incl. stand)
Dimensions: Height 21.6 cm (excl. stand), 24.2 cm (incl. stand)
With an associated modern stand. (2)
The word 'oshin' (応身) would have been inscribed underneath the number 33 and can be translated as 'manifestations'. The Thirty‑Three Manifestations are described in the Lotus Sutra, scroll 7, chapter 25, in the chapter 'The Universal Gate of the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara'. In various lands, Avalokiteshvara perceives the sufferings of sentient beings and transforms into whatever form is needed to save them. These thirty‑three forms are the manifestations taken in response to those different needs.
Honji suijaku is a Japanese religious concept in which Buddhist deities are seen as the original or 'true' forms (honji) of local Shinto kami (suijaku or manifest traces). Developed during the Heian and Kamakura periods, this doctrine provided a theological framework for the syncretism of Buddhism and Shinto, allowing native kami to be understood as manifestations of Buddhist figures. In art, honji suijaku is often represented visually by pairing a Buddhist deity with its corresponding kami.
In medieval shrine documents, Five Kings (五王) refers to five local kami grouped together as a collective deity-class, not to be confused with the esoteric Buddhist Five Great Wisdom Kings. A typical configuration of the Five Kings in shrine records is: first king - often the chief tutelary deity, associated with the Juichimen Kannon, second king - paired with Fudo Myoo, third king - paired with Yakushi Nyorai (Medicine Buddha), fourth king - paired with Jizo Bosatsu, fifth king - with Amida Bosatsu or Seishi Bosatsu
. The actual kami names differ by shrine, but the fivefold structure and Buddhist correspondences are consistent.
Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related bronze figure of the seated Juichimen Kannon, dated Heian to Kamakura period, 12th century, 16.5 cm tall, in the Cleveland Museum of Art, reference number 1960.279.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Christie's New York, 16 September 2025, lot 119
Price: USD 13,970 or approx.
EUR 12,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A bronze sculpture of a standing Kannon (Bodhisattva),Kamakura-Nanbokucho period (14th century)
Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling and manner of casting with similar pose and robes. Note the larger size (33.7 cm).
Buyer's Premium
30%
